Staff Profile

Ria’s research focuses on environmental pedagogy and ecopedagogy as frameworks for understanding how learning, participation, and knowledge-making shape responses to climate and environmental change. Grounded in human geography and social science, her work examines climate and sustainability education as a relational, place-based, and practice-oriented process rather than a purely technical challenge.

A central strand of her research advances community-led and participatory approaches to environmental action, including community-led science and citizen science. Through this work, she explores how power, care, trust, and responsibility are negotiated within collaborative research, and how participatory processes can support more inclusive, just, and locally grounded pathways from research to action across community, policy, and institutional contexts.

Selected Publications: 

Dunkley, R., and K.Somerville. 2026. “Staying With the Waste: Litter, Learning and Slow Violence in Wasted-Edgelands.” Antipode58, no. 2: e70153. https://doi.org/10.1111/anti.70153.

Dunkley, R.A., Florence Halstead, Sarah Gambell, Exploring the Role of Frame Analysis in Promoting Inclusive Climate Action: Insights from the GALLANT Project [accepted, forthcoming] – preprint: https://eprints.gla.ac.uk/378148/ 

Dunkley, R.A. (2026). Facing the Anthropocene: Community Resilience and Environmental Pedagogy for a Fragile Planet. Scottish Educational Review (published online ahead of print 2026). https://doi.org/10.1163/27730840-bja10052

Plant, E., Dunkley, R., Dominoni, D.M., McCafferty, D.J. (2025). Supporting pollinators in urban gardens: floral richness and abundance influence flower visitor interactions regardless of the surrounding landscape. Urban Ecosystems, 28, 235. DOI: 10.1007/s11252-025-01848-7.

Barrett-Hacking, E., Davies, B., Bastos, E., Dunkley, R., Hogarth, H., Sands, B. and Wenham, L. (2023) Mosaicking Childhoodnature Relations: Situated Encounters with Country in Times of Climate Change, Children’s Geographies (doi:  https://doi.org/10.1080/14733285.2023.2285473)

Dunkley, R. (2023). Ecological kin-making in the multispecies muddle: an analytical framework for understanding embodied environmental citizen science experiences. Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers, (doi: 10.1111/tran.12613)

Dunkley, R. and Murphy, B. (2022) Localizing the Sustainable Development Goals? Engaging Young People With Issues of Environmental and Social Justice Through Participatory Photography Walks. SoJo Journal: Educational Foundations and Social Justice Education, 8(1), pp. 57-75.

Barrett-Hacking, E., Davies, B., Bastos, E., Dunkley, R., Hogarth, H., Sands, B. and Wenham, L. (2022). Reimagining the place of nature in education: photographic provocations for relational becoming. NORRAG Special Issue, 7, pp. 55-60.

Smith, T. A., Dunkley, R. A. and Jones, S. (2022). Storying wild landscapes: multimodal interactions with digital app-based heritage. International Journal of Heritage Studies, 28(7), pp. 803-819. (doi: 10.1080/13527258.2022.2086154)

Hart, AG, Adcock, D, Barr, M, Church, S, Clegg, T, Copland, S, De Meyer, K, Dunkley, R, Pateman, RM, Underhill, R, Wyles, K and Pocock, MJO. (2022). Understanding Engagement, Marketing, and Motivation to Benefit Recruitment and Retention in Citizen Science. Citizen Science: Theory and Practice, 7(1): 5, pp. 1–9. DOI: https://doi.org/10.5334/cstp.436

Laurier, E., Dunkley, R. , Smith, T.A. and Reeves, S. (2021) Crossing with care: bogs, streams and assistive mobilities as family praxis in the countryside.Gesprächsforschung: Online-Zeitschrift zur verbalen Interaktion, (In Press)

Smith, T. A., Laurier, E., Reeves, S. and Dunkley, R. A. (2020) “Off the beaten map”: navigating with digital maps on moorland. Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers, 45(1), pp. 223-240.(doi: 10.1111/tran.12336)

Dunkley, R. A. and Smith, T. A. (2019) Geocoaching: memories and habits of learning in practices of ecopedagogy.Geographical Journal, 185(3), pp. 292-302. (doi: 10.1111/geoj.12295)

Dunkley, R. A. (2019) Monitoring ecological change in UK woodlands and rivers: an exploration of the relational geographies of citizen science.Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers, 44(1), pp. 16-31. (doi: 10.1111/tran.12258)

Dunkley, R. A. and Smith, T. A. (2019) By-standing memories of curious observations: children’s storied landscapes of ecological encounter.Cultural Geographies, 26(11), pp. 89-107.(doi: 10.1177/1474474018792652)

Dunkley, R. , Baker, S., Constant, N. and Sanderson-Bellamy, A. (2018) Enabling the IPBES conceptual framework to work across knowledge boundaries.International Environmental Agreements: Politics, Law and Economics, 18(6), pp. 779-799. (doi: 10.1007/s10784-018-9415-z)

Dunkley, R. A. (2018) Engaging local small to medium enterprises with environmental sustainability. In: Jensen, E. (ed.) From Conservation Education to Public Engagement: Research, Principles and Practice. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9781107629462 (In Press)

Franklin, A. and Dunkley, R. (2017) Becoming a (green) identity entrepreneur: learning to negotiate situated identities to nurture community environmental practice. Environment and Planning A, 49(7), pp. 1500-1516. (doi:10.1177/0308518X17699610)

Dunkley, R. (2018) Space-timeScapes as ecopedagogy. Journal of Environmental Education, 49(2), pp. 117-129. (doi: 10.1080/00958964.2017.1417223)

Sageidet, B. M., Almeida, C. and Dunkley, R. (2018) Children's access to urban gardens in Norway, India and the United Kingdom. International Journal of Environmental and Science Education, 13(5), pp. 467-480.

Smith, T. A. and Dunkley, R. (2018) Technology-nonhuman-child assemblages: reconceptualising rural childhood roaming. Children's Geographies, 16(3), pp. 304-318. (doi: 10.1080/14733285.2017.1407406)

Dunkley, R. (2017) Making Sustainable Places? Realising the UK’s Low Carbon Transition Plan in Rural South-West England, Through Local Third Party Engagement. International Symposium on Society and Resource Management (ISSRM), Umeå, Sweden, 19-22 Jun 2017.

Jones, S., Smith, T. and Dunkley, R. (2017) Measuring our Interaction with Digital Heritage Apps ‘in the wild’. Digital Past Conference 2017, Newport, Wales, 15-16 Feb 2017.

Dunkley, R. A. and Franklin, A. (2017) Failing better: The stochastic art of evaluating community-led environmental action programs. Evaluation and Program Planning, 60, pp. 112-122.(PMID:27842275)

Dunkley, R. (2017) Narrative analysis: Attending to the poetic structure of interview transcripts to understand the tourist experience. In: SAGE Research Methods Datasets [online]. SAGE Publications. (Accepted for Publication)

Dunkley, R. A. (2017) The role of Citizen Science in environmental education: A critical exploration of the citizen scientist experience. In: Ceccaroni, L. and Piera, J. (eds.) Analyzing the Role of Citizen Science in Modern Research. IGI Global, pp. 213-230. ISBN 9781522509622 (doi:10.4018/978-1-5225-0962-2.ch010)

Smith, T. A. and Dunkley, R. (2016) Evaluation of Learning Activity in National Parks. UK National Park Association Outreach and Educators Workshop, Stackpole Centre, Pembrokeshire, 24 Nov 2016.

Dunkley, R. , Smith, T. A., Lorimer, E. and Reeves, S. (2016) ‘Walking with Romans’: Technology, Nature, Navigation and Interaction in Outdoor Settings. HANS (Human activity in Natural Settings): Nature as a Site for Mobility, Interaction and Socialization Studies, Oulu, Finland, 24-25 Oct 2016.

Smith, T. A., Dunkley, R. and Jones, S. (2016) Measuring Our Interaction With Mobile Device Applications ‘in the Wild’ – Can They Change Visitor Behaviour? Association for Heritage Interpretation (AHI) Conference 2016: Can Interpretation Change the World?, Belfast, Northern Ireland, 05-07 Oct 2016.

Dunkley, R. (2016) Interpreting a Dark Past for a Brighter Future? The Contentious Nature of Heritage Interpretation at Thanatourism Sites. Association for Heritage Interpretation (AHI) Conference 2016: Can Interpretation Change the World?, Belfast, Northern Ireland, 05-07 Oct 2016.

Dunkley, R. (2016) Project wild thing & children’s relationships with nature. Environmental Education, 113, pp. 13-15.

Smith, T. A. and Dunkley, R. (2016) New Frontiers or Frustrating Distractions? Using Innovative Technological Methods to Understand the Role of Apps and Mobile Technologies in Children and Families Interactions Within the Outdoors. RGS-IBG Annual International Conference, Royal Geographical Society, London, 30 Aug - 02 Sep 2016.

Dunkley, R. (2016) Citizen Science as a Leisure Pursuit. Invited Lecture: Department of Tourism Seminar Series, University of Otago, New Zealand, 14 Sep 2016.

Dunkley, R. (2016) A light in dark places? Analysing the impact of dark tourism experiences on everyday life. In: Hooper, G. and Lennon, J. J. (eds.) Dark Tourism: Practice and Interpretation. Series: New directions in tourism analysis. Routledge: London, pp. 108-120. ISBN 9781472452436

Smith, T. A. and Dunkley, R. (2016) Roaming and Nature, Creativity and Technology: Experimenting with Contrasting Qualitative Methodologies and Impact in the Brecon Beacons National Park.Innovative Research Methods with Children and Young People, Cardiff University, Cardiff, 25 May 2016. (Unpublished)

Dunkley, R. (2016) Engaging Participants in Citizen Science Studies: A Qualitative Approach to Exploring the Motivations and Experiences of Environmental Citizen Scientists. In: First International ECSA Conference: Citizen Science - Innovation in Open Science, Society and Policy, Berlin, Germany, 19-21 May 2016, (Unpublished)

Dunkley, R. (2016) Motivations and Experiences of Environmental Citizen Science. In: First International ECSA Conference: Citizen Science - Innovation in Open Science, Society and Policy, Berlin, Germany, 19-21 May 2016, (Unpublished)

Dunkley, R. (2016) Invited talk: Heritage Tourism and Thanatourist Experiences. Third Urban Transformation Conference (UTC), Rotterdam, Netherlands, 17 May 2016. (Unpublished)

Dunkley, R. A. (2016) Children Place and Sustainability, edited by Margaret Somerville and Monica Green. Children's Geographies,(doi:10.1080/14733285.2016.1184836) [Book Review] (Early Online Publication)

Dunkley, R. (2016) Engaging Publics in Scientific Research: A Qualitative Approach to Exploring the Motivations and Experiences of Environmental Citizen Scientists. WISERD Seminar Series, Cardiff University, Cardiff, 05 Apr 2016. (Unpublished)

Smith, T. A. and Dunkley, R. A. (2016) Roaming and Nature, Creativity and Technology: Experimenting With Contrasting Qualitative Methodologies and Impact in the Brecon Beacons National Park. South West Qualitative Research Symposium 2016, University of Bath, United Kingdom, 23 Mar 2016.

Dunkley, R. A. (2016) Learning at eco-attractions: Exploring the bifurcation of nature and culture through experiential environmental education. Journal of Environmental Education, 47(3), pp. 213-221. (doi:10.1080/00958964.2016.1164113)

Dunkley, R. A. and Smith, T. A. (2016) Evaluating the outdoor learning experience – a toolkit for practitioners. Cardiff University.

Dunkley, R. (2015) The Role of Citizen Science in Environmental Education: a Critical Exploration of the Citizens Scientist Experience. Sustainable Places Research Institute Seminar Series, Cardiff University, Wales, 18 Dec 2015. (Unpublished)

Dunkley, R. (2015) Invited lecture: 'History, Heritage and Battlefield Tourism'. In: War! Popular Culture and European heritage of Major Armed Conflicts, University of Rotterdam, Netherlands, 30 Oct 2015, (Unpublished)

Dunkley, R. (2015) Exploring the Potentials of Citizen Science as a Pedagogic Approach Within Informal Environmental Education.2015 International Greening Education Event, Karlsruhe, Germany, 21-23 Oct 2015. (Unpublished)

Dunkley, R. (2015) At Home in the Park: Exploring Resident Young People’s Interactions With Nature Within Brecon Beacons National Park. The Great Outdoors? Children, Young People and Families in Natural and Rural Spaces, The University of Northampton, United Kinddom, 09-10 Sep 2015. (Unpublished)

Dunkley, R. (2015) The Role of the Citizen Science Experience in Environmental Education. RGS-IBG Annual International Conference, University of Exeter, 01-04 Sep 2015. (Unpublished)

Dunkley, R. (2015) Invited Lecture: Eco-Pedagogy and the ‘Living Laboratory’. Evolving Eco-creative Pedagogies in Living Laboratories, University of Warwick, United Kingdom, 17 Jun 2015. (Unpublished)

Dunkley, R. A. (2015) Beyond temporal reflections in thanatourism research. Annals of Tourism Research, 52, 177 - 179.(doi:10.1016/j.annals.2015.03.007)

Dunkley, R. (2015) Urban-Rural Community Engagement for Sustainability and Environmental Action. Social Science Department Seminar Series, Luleå Tekniska Universitet of Sweden, 23 Feb 2015. (Unpublished)

Dunkley, R. and Franklin, A. (2015) Measuring Social Outcome.Outdoor Recreation Network Research Seminar: Values in Outdoor Recreation, Cheltenham, United Kingdom, 30 Jan 2015.

Dunkley, R. A. (2015) Reimagining a sustainable future through artistic events: a case study from Wales. In: Moufakkir, O. and Pernecky, T. (eds.) Ideological, Social and Cultural Aspects of Events.CABI: Wallingford, Oxfordshire, pp. 100-109. ISBN 9781780643526

 

Dunkley, R. (2014) Ecopedagogy and the University Campus.Sustainable Places Research Institute Seminar Series, Cardiff University, Wales, 07 Nov 2014. (Unpublished)

Franklin, A. and Dunkley, R. (2014) Green Identity, Place Attachment and Community Sustainability Practice. Environment Research Group Seminar, Cardiff, UK, 30 Jun 2014. (Unpublished)

Dunkley, R. (2014) Homing in: Sensing, sense-making and sustainable place-making: Sensing, Feeling, Talking, Reflecting, Futuring. Project Report. Cardiff University, Cardiff.

Dunkley, R. (2014) Tourism and Sustainable Development: Reconsidering a Concept of Vague Policies (Jörn W. Mundt).Tourism Analysis, 19(1), pp. 125-128. [Book Review]

Dunkley, R. A. (2014) Botanics, birds and biomes: the role of eco-attractions in learning for a sustainable future. In: Aitchison, C.(ed.) Education and Outdoor Learning: Adventure, Tourism and Sustainable Development. Series: LSA publication, 174 (22). Leisure Studies Association, pp. 41-57. ISBN 9781905369379